{"id":620312,"date":"2026-06-04T06:48:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T06:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/620312\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T06:48:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T06:48:12","slug":"wildfires-and-war-rage-in-shawn-huckins-theatrical-paintings-colossal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/620312\/","title":{"rendered":"Wildfires and War Rage in Shawn Huckins’ Theatrical Paintings \u2014 Colossal"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Slow Burn, Shawn Huckins<\/a> puts the cognitive dissonance that defines our current era in stark relief. The New Hampshire-based painter has long challenged American mythology and collective aggrandizing by reinterpreting canonical artworks and visual languages. His series have commented on the U.S.\u2019s proclivity for erasing history<\/a> and the ways our garments<\/a> convey social status and class. In this new body of work, he directs us to the contradictory experience of witnessing destruction as both a spectacle and a distant occurrence. <\/p>\n

Slow Burn presents a suite of landscapes, each veiled by curtains. Floral drapery flanks a catastrophic explosion, a sliver of sunlight peeks through a decorative toile de jouy pattern, and delicate lace veils a wildfire in the distance. Opened just enough to allow a partial glimpse, the curtains suggest a theatrical scene in which the raging disasters of war and the climate crisis are ongoing.<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cWar Cloud and Floral Blue Curtain\u201d (2026), oil and acrylic on canvas, 37 x 30 inches<\/p>\n

In contrast to the 19th-century landscapes synonymous with the Hudson River School, Huckins stages scenes in which romanticism and idealized vistas are long gone. While the viewer peers outward from the safety of a home, the fires and bombs that characterize the outside world inch closer, and the complacency, privilege, and pure luck that have provided protection thus far are ever more precarious.<\/p>\n

Slow Burn runs from July 11 to August 22 at K Contemporary<\/a> in Denver. Until then, find more from the artist on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cWildfire Sunset Behind Sheer Curtain\u201d (2026), acrylic on canvas, 60 x 48 inches<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cFirst Sun and Green Curtain\u201d (2026), oil on canvas, 64 x 96 inches<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cWildfire Sunrise Behind Floral Lace Curtain\u201d (2026), acrylic on canvas, 36 x 30 inches<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cWar Cloud and Glowing Blue Curtain\u201d (2026), oil and acrylic on canvas, 60 x 48 inches<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cFirst Sun and Toile de Jouy Curtain (2)\u201d (2026), oil on canvas, 32 x 26 inches<\/p>\n

\"a<\/a>\u201cSunset and Glowing Green Curtain Study (after Church)\u201d (2026), oil and acrylic on canvas, 32 x 26 inches<\/p>\n

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